Canada’s Greener Homes grant to sunset in the new year

Canada’s Greener Homes grant program will no longer be accepting new applicants starting in March 2024.

The Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada said it confirmed these reports, saying that uptake for the grants has exceeded what was forecasted and the average amount for each application was higher than expected.

HRAI sent out a newsletter talking about the issue, saying that Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) has said further announcements about the need for climate action will be coming in the next weeks or months.

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Global News reached out to NRCan for comment.

According to the NRCan website, the program hands out grant money for retrofits in homes like insulation, windows and doors, as well as heat pumps and solar panels.

Grants can range from $125 to $5,000, but an evaluation needs to be done before and after the retrofit to qualify.

Martin Luymes, VP of government and stakeholder relations with HRAI, said it was notified a few weeks ago, calling it an advanced notice for people within the industry.

He said intake was different from when the work gets done, saying there’s often quite a delay.

“So the wind down really is not so much March 2024 as maybe a year after that, or maybe a year and a half, when the work has actually been completed and the grant has been fulfilled,” Luymes said.

He said the point of a grant like this is to encourage Canadians to invest in something they might not otherwise do.

Luymes said when it comes to the HVAC industry, that revolves around heat pumps and clean energy systems and is preferable to have programs that are long-term, and not something that is “on again, off again.”

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“(They) tend to prefer long-term programs so our members can plan for the long term, make sure they have the right products in stock and the right skills for the people that do the installations, and they know how to sell the products accordingly.”

He said there was a little bit of panic within the industry, with there being a worry that sales will drop off.

Luymes said it was a bit startling to see a seven-year program stop like this only two and a half years in.

He said if the federal government wants to hit some of its targets for climate action, programs like the Greener Homes grant program need to be sustained for long periods of time.

“I think the original target for Greener Homes was 700,000 homes. That represents less than 10 per cent of the total number of detached homes in the country, and probably less than five per cent of all homes.”

He said this was just the tip of the iceberg for opportunities in Canada, saying there are still many homes across the country that can benefit from a program like this.